90

This weeks Canton Tea Clubs tea is Silver Needle (Yin Zhen). It’s strange but I have been craving a lot of white tea the moment so it’s very fitting.

The leaves whilst raw smell slightly sweet and floral. They are silvery green in colour and form thin, sharp leaves that are so fresh they have a natural fuzz.

Brewed in a small teapot using 4g with three infusions starting with 1 minute and increasing each infusion by an extra minute.

Once wet the leaves smell sweet and somewhat fruity, almost like melon or sweet pea.

Infusion 1 – Very pale yellow in colour with a sweet and vegetal fragrance. The tea itself is crisp, fresh, light and floral. A wonderful example of fresh Silver Needle.

Infusion 2 – Same colour and smell. The flavour is a little stronger and crisper. The sweetness is now also more fruity but still subtle and fresh.

Infusion 3 – The same colour and smell. The flavour has weakened muchly and is now more floral than fruity but extremely subtly.

Three steeps were recommended and they turned out nicely. With the club giving me 25g this week and a teapot only uses 4g I have plenty left to enjoy :) Thank you Canton Tea Club.

Preparation
165 °F / 73 °C
darky

i’m usualy steeping my white for 3 – 4 and 5min with 3g :)

KittyLovesTea

I think it’s mainly down to preference. This time I followed the instructions given to try and review it efficiently but teapot steeping is new to me, I usually just use my gaiwan which takes a lot more loose tea.

darky

i still need to purchase a gaiwan, got some that i want to buy from butiki. but well costly months and bills… going to buy one soon :)

KittyLovesTea

My only advice would be to get a basic one, something you can learn with. When I started using them I kept dropping it when pouring. You get used to it very quickly though. :)

darky

u mean u destroyed a few gaiwans and spilled loads off tea? :) lol

KittyLovesTea

Lol Not broken one yet but very lucky not to have, it’s just difficult for me as I have small feminine hands. Holding the bottom saucer with gaiwan full of boiling water and trying to hold the lid at a slant in place to pour the tea with one hand was difficult.

darky

just remember the chinese all got even smaller hands ;)

Roughage

I just got this one today and am looking forward to trying it.

Login or sign up to leave a comment.

Comments

darky

i’m usualy steeping my white for 3 – 4 and 5min with 3g :)

KittyLovesTea

I think it’s mainly down to preference. This time I followed the instructions given to try and review it efficiently but teapot steeping is new to me, I usually just use my gaiwan which takes a lot more loose tea.

darky

i still need to purchase a gaiwan, got some that i want to buy from butiki. but well costly months and bills… going to buy one soon :)

KittyLovesTea

My only advice would be to get a basic one, something you can learn with. When I started using them I kept dropping it when pouring. You get used to it very quickly though. :)

darky

u mean u destroyed a few gaiwans and spilled loads off tea? :) lol

KittyLovesTea

Lol Not broken one yet but very lucky not to have, it’s just difficult for me as I have small feminine hands. Holding the bottom saucer with gaiwan full of boiling water and trying to hold the lid at a slant in place to pour the tea with one hand was difficult.

darky

just remember the chinese all got even smaller hands ;)

Roughage

I just got this one today and am looking forward to trying it.

Login or sign up to leave a comment.

Profile

Bio

I’m 34 years old from Leicester, England named Kayleigh.

I started off many years ago drinking herbal and fruit teas which over time peaked my interest in trying new types. Eventually I began to import and sample many different teas and cultures which I still do today. My life goal is to try as many teas and ways of having tea as possible.

Tea wise my cravings change constantly from pu erh one month to jasmine green to the next and so on.

I also enjoy watching Japanese Anime and horror films.

I am always up for tea swaps so if you see anything in my virtual cupboard then please contact me.

A short list to help swapping with me easier though honestly I am not fussy and am willing to try anything. Plus the notes below are usually, sometimes I love a tea that has an ingredient I tend to dislike and other times I hate a tea that I thought I would love.

Likes: Any fruit but especially melon and orange, vanilla, all tea types (black, green, white etc), nuts (any), flowers, ginger, chai.

Dislikes: Licorice, aniseed, clove, eucalyptus, lavender.

My rating system
I have my own way of rating teas that makes each one personal. I have different categories, I rate each tea depending on what it is made of. For example: I rate green teas in a different way to black teas or herbal teas. So black, white, green, Pu Erh, Rooibos, Oolong, blends and tisanes all have their own rating system. That way I can compare them with other teas of the same or similar type before for an adequate rating. And when I do give top marks which is very rare I am actually saying that I would love to drink that tea all day, every day if possible. It’s a tea that I would never turn down or not be in the mood for. So while I agree that no tea is 100% perfect (as nothing is) I am saying that it’s as close as it comes to it. After all, in my book the perfect teas (or close to perfect anyway) are ones that I could drink all the time. That is why you will find a high quality black or Oolong will not have as high a score as a cheap flavoured blend, they are simply not being compared in the same category.

Location

Leicester, England, United Kingdom

Following These People

Moderator Tools

Mark as Spammer